The Isle of Wight Council has failed to prosecute a single rogue landlord over the past 5 years, despite the local authority receiving more than 1,100 complaints.
Data collected from councils across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight by Public Interest Lawyers has revealed that zero rogue landlords faced a court prosecution by 6 local authorities in the past 5 years, despite the councils receiving thousands of complaints about housing conditions or landlord conduct from concerned residents.
Councils covering Basingstoke & Deane, Fareham, Gosport, New Forest, Test Valley and the Isle of Wight have confirmed that they opted against taking court action against any landlord ietween 2019/20 and 2023/24. Out of the 6, the Isle of Wight Council had the most complaints, receiving 1,167.
Across the region, Portsmouth City Council took the most complaints, with 3,647 across the 5 years. The council opened court proceedings against 2 landlords; 1 in 2022/23 and 1 in 2023/24. Eastleigh Borough Council took 2 landlords to court in 2020/21, with the pair fined almost £30,000 between them, but had none in the 3 following years.
Local authorities for East Hampshire, Hart, Havant and Southampton did not provide data.
Nationally, some councils have argued that civil penalties, as well as formal warnings, have been sufficient in maintaining landlord compliance. However, the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) learned earlier this year that less than half of the fines issued against rogue landlords between 2021 and 2023 had been collected.
Organisations protecting renters’ rights have urged the government to address issues facing renters with the Renters’ Rights Bill, which is in the process of being passed through Parliament.
Reacting to Public Interest Lawyers’ report, Tom Darling, Director of the Renters’ Reform Coalition, has said:
“These are worrying findings.
“The key problem councils face here is ultimately a lack of resources, after years of rising costs and shrinking budgets.
“We’ve called on the government to provide local authorities – who will have the crucial role of enforcing the forthcoming Renters’ Rights Bill – with the additional funding and guidance they need to protect renters from rogue landlords.”
This is a disgrace. Haven’t got the resources? Pull the other one. This type of prosecution should be self financing if the case is successful, surely? Or is the legal department of IOW Council so ineffective they think they’ll lose? And meanwhile, tenants suffer.
This is just clarity that Government run organisations
are useless.
We pay these morons ridiculous salaries, extortionate
expenses and idiotic pensions.
Time to reduce the workforce and save billions of
pounds.
I now live just outside of Portsmouth, but sadly we have all one way or another elected lazy, untrustworthy and spineless wimps to run our councils and I would imagine it is the same all over this once great Britain. In all of the years that I have lived so far, it has always been the same. Labour, Conservative, Labour, Conservative etc. It will not change until the people of this country, that’s you and me get off of our arses and do something to let any future governments that we have all had enough and that we will do anything to get things right and fair.